Seat Cloth / Trim / Cover...

[bt_cav]

Hi I was wondering in anyone has replaced the Original seat covering on their seats? I have always wanted to know whats involved in this, and how easy they are to get, are they ford only?

Also what would you need to do when removing the seat cover with reguards to the air bags?

[catch]

Do you mind me asking why you want to change the seat covers, is it a Mk2 Focus, with that appears to be stained seat bottoms, especially the fronts, and more so the drivers?

[bt_cav]

not at all Thanks for your intrest

I just feel that the drivers seat is quite worn, maybe it can be washed, also on one of the rear seats (base) there is a slight slit 2cm maximum.

I could not find much information about this.

[catch]

I thought that might be the problem your wanting to solve. Fact is the fabric Ford used on the Mk1 Zetec was excellent for not showing wear or fade. In the Mk2 Zetec if is crap, anyway that is what I found out. I did not notice it when I bought my second hand motor, but I did the day after. Both times I looked at the car at the dealers, once to do the deal and the second time to pick it up, it looked fine. Now I reckon because the dealer knew when I was going to view and pick the car up, they run an ever so damp cloth over it, just enough that you don't end up with a wet bottom. That way the fade temporally disappears.

Anyway, first off I used upholstery shampoo, as it looked like a guy with cement dust on his overalls had been sat in the drivers seat. At first it looked like it had worked, but that was only because the fade disappears when it is wet. So I then set about looking for dyes to treat the affected area's but come up short.

Now what I have found quite effective is to pour some "Back to Black" trim polish on a wet cloth. Don't go mad with it, it takes very little, you want it to be diluted by the water on the damp cloth. Rub it in on the seat bottom on the affected area in particular, but fanning it out all over I found best. Let it soak in a while, then rinse the cloth you used to apply the B to B out with clean water, ring it out and rub it over the whole surface area. This will bring some of the "back to black" off the top surface area. Now either let it dry naturally or use a hair dryer.

Now you will be thinking, but doesn't it come off on your clothes if you get in soaking wet. Well I've never got in the car soaking wet, but I've got in when its been raining and it has not stained any clothing. Once the wife did clear ice off the windscreen with a plastic scrapper. Then put the iced filled scraper on the passenger seat and then drove to work. The ice defrosted into a puddle of water on the seat, and when the seat dried out it left some water marks on the seat........bit of B to B and it was right again.

Worth a try, remember you don't need to go mad with the B to B. If still in doubt just try a tiny area on the side of the seat to begin with. And once you see it works,you will be confident to sort the rest out.

[bt_cav]

Hey Catch,

Thanks for the advice, am I correct in saying that the back to black is a clear liquid? Also what would be the best way to clean the seats? Im thinking a vax or such like with some 1001 / autoglym car interior shampoo.

The car has covered 130,000 and the seats have never been shampooed, I have knowen the car from new, it has always been pet and smoke free so its not a horror story.

[catch]

Sorry for taking a long time to get back to you, been busy out side to day with it being so nice. No not the clear stuff, the stuff you need to be wearing the Wife's rubber gloves when you apply it. I just used some bog standard car upholstery shampoo.

The fix is not permanent, with mine 19 months down the line it could do with doing again on the drivers seat. But in my opinion it's better than just leaving it as is.